Clarkson professors aim for perfect sled for 2018 Olympic luge team

POTSDAM  For the Olympic athletes clinging to a tiny piece of steel and plastic while hurtling down an icy slope at nearly 90 miles per hour, a fraction of a second could mean the difference between a gold medal and going home empty-handed.

Clarkson University researchers hope to give Americans an edge in the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea by using computer modeling to create a sled superior to the hand-crafted variety usually seen today.

Professors Douglas G. Bohl and Brian Helenbrook have been trying to build a better sled since 2010.

Mr. Bohl met members of the U.S. Luge Association, headquartered in Lake Placid, when his son expressed interest in joining a luge team.

Luge is a small community, so you get to know the coaches and the athletes that are in there, he said.

Mr. Bohls son no longer luges, but the professors ties to the luge association led to a project that may one day take his work to the Olympics.

The professors had hoped to see their efforts represented in Sochi this year, but the task proved more time-consuming than they had anticipated.

Its a lot more complicated than it looks like when you get into it. We actually had to take a step back to get ourselves into a position to make a real contribution, Mr. Bohl said.

Their progress was not quick enough to create a sled in that athletes could become accustomed to in time for the games.

The team wants to be on equipment that theyre familiar with, and theyre comfortable with, and we just ran out of time.

The professors and two students are now refining their efforts. They will take their prototype to Lake Placid next month to begin testing.

Specifically, the researchers are designing the pod, or seat, of the small sled. Molds for the shell are usually created by hand, and are prone to error, Mr. Bohl said.

What were hoping to do is to add a little bit of science to it, he said.

The researchers are recreating the pod as a computer model, which allows it to be manufactured by a machine. It also makes tweaking the design easier, with less room for error.